Perfect Key Lime Pie

Submitted by Raquel Grinnell

"This is a combination of my favorite key lime pie recipes. I love key lime pie, but many times find it too tart for my liking; the cream cheese in this recipe is the perfect foil to the lime juice and contributes an amazing creaminess. And the sour cream topping MAKES this pie - don't skip it! The only shortcut I take is to sometimes use a store-bought graham cracker crust....shhhhh, don't tell my family! Cooking time includes 2 hours chilling time in the refrigerator."

 

• Ready In: 2hrs 40mins
• Ingredients: 10
• Yields: 1 pie
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1⁄2 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 3 egg yolks
• 1⁄2 cup lime juice (I prefer Nellie & Joe's Famous Key West Lime Juice that you find bottled in many supermarkets, but h)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1⁄3 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon lime zest

directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In a bowl, mix the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter with your hands. Press the mixture firmly into a 9-inch pie pan, and bake until browned, about 15-20 minutes.
3. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack to room temperature before filling. To speed this process, I sometimes refrigerate the crust for 10 minutes.
4. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
5. Beat softened cream cheese in mixing bowl until creamy. Add sweetened condensed milk and beat to incorporate. Add egg yolks and beat well. Add lime juice and beat till combined.
6. Pour mixture into cooled pie crust and spread with spatula until evenly distributed. Place on cookie sheet and then into the oven and bake for 10 minutes or until the filling begins to set.
7. Remove from oven and chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Once chilled, combine the sour cream and powdered sugar and spread over the top of the pie using a spatula. Sprinkle the lime zest as a garnish on top of the sour cream and serve chilled.